As I look around my part of the country, I can’t help but notice that leaves are starting to change colors, football fans of all flavors are gearing up for competition and pharmacies are stocked up with flu vaccine – ready to begin administration of the annual flu shots.

Walgreens on Wednesday partnered with the United Nations Foundation to help provide vaccines during this flu season to children in developing countries through a donation to the Foundation's Shot@Life campaign.

Emdeon's Gene Boerger said pharmacies are busily expanding into providing medical services, including providing basic healthcare screenings and immunization services. As a result, they are becoming healthcare providers, over and above their traditional roles. But just how well they are able to integrate within the healthcare continuum over the long term depends upon the strength of the bonds they are able to build with payers and medical providers … and those relationships are rooted in data connectivity.

Patient care is local. And at the end of the day, when the book has been written on healthcare reform that simple fact will create more opportunity for community pharmacy owners — at least the ones who are able to seize that opportunity.

As new state legislation takes effect Monday to help bring greater patient access to vaccines, Walgreens has significantly expanded vaccine availability at all of its 204 locations across Indiana, the retailer announced.

Automatic spending cuts stemming from the failure of Congress and the White House to reach a budget deal will likely harm the disease-preventing capabilities of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, according to a new report.

A Virginia-based pharmacy school will collaborate with an alliance of more than 22,000 pharmacies around the country to find ways to promote and increase pneumococcal vaccinations among elderly and high-risk people.

Ultimately, there’s no “retail pharmacy” without the “pharmacy,” and that’s true of any store that dispenses prescription drugs — whether it’s a small independent drug store, a nationwide chain, a supermarket or a mass merchandiser. But in many respects, Rite Aid is trying to make the “pharmacy” component of that phrase just a little bit bigger.

Recognizing the important role its community pharmacy team plays in helping people get, stay and live well, Walgreens is celebrating its more than 27,000 pharmacists and their commitment to patient care in communities nationwide during American Pharmacists Month.

Frank Scorpiniti, CEO of Rexall Pharma Plus, issued a statement this week applauding the Ontario government’s announcement that it will expand the role of pharmacists to provide more options for Ontarians’ healthcare needs.

Sanofi Pasteur, the vaccines division of French drug maker Sanofi, recently unveiled an effort to promote flu vaccinations that includes advertising and celebrity endorsements. DSN had the opportunity to talk to Sanofi Pasteur director of U.S. public relations and communications Michael Szumera about the campaign.

In light of a decision by the Ontario government to expand the scope of practice for pharmacists to include administering flu shots, Shoppers Drug Mart has announced that it will offer vaccination clinics in more than 750 stores in Ontario and across Canada.

Beyond the most obvious impetus for providing vaccines at the retail pharmacy level — it protects the public’s health by providing a more convenient option than making an appointment with the doctor — it also might help save money for employers.

To help improve flu immunization rates in underserved communities, Walgreens and Access Community Health Network on Tuesday announced a collaboration that will provide 5,000 free flu shot vouchers to Access to help those either without health insurance coverage or those unable to afford the vaccination to get their flu shot.

A vast army of some 70,000 Walgreens pharmacists, technicians, nurses and nurse practitioners, and other clinicians is poised to plug some of the gaps in the nation’s overstretched healthcare system with expanded services, greater access for patients and new solutions for providers and payers in desperate need of quality, cost-effective solutions.

A study recently published in the Cost Effectiveness and Resource Allocation journal found that when more vaccinations are administered in an alternate setting, such as a pharmacy, employers realize a greater cost benefit.

The American Academy of Pediatrics on Tuesday recommended annual trivalent seasonal influenza immunization for all individuals ages 6 months and older, including all children, adolescents and young adults.

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In this beauty report, Drug Store News takes a deeper dive into some of the leading trends that are reshaping beauty.more ...

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